See Deception, Webster's Third New International Dictionary of the English Language Unabridged (1981) (the act of deceiving, cheating, hoodwinking, misleading, or deluding); see also Deceive, id. We sustain the Tatums' first issue. at 64. Generally speaking, the column's italicized words quoted above reflect a theme of alleged dishonesty by people, including those who wrote Paul's obituary, who refuse to acknowledge that someone committed suicide. Animal / Dog Law Based on that evidence, the court concluded that a factfinder could find that the false gistthat Neely was disciplined for operating while using drugswas more damaging to Neely's reputation than the truththat Neely was disciplined for self-prescribing medications. Dallas Morning News Leading daily newspaper serving the Dallas-Fort Worth area. at 1019. The Tatums timely responded. Paul died from a gunshot wound to the head. But a topic is not a public controversy merely because some people are talking about it: A general concern or interest will not suffice. DMN also asserted the following no-evidence grounds: There was no evidence that the Tatums were consumers. THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS, INC. AND STEVE BLOW v. JOHN TATUM AND MARY ANN TATUM; from Dallas County; 5th Court of Appeals District (05-14-01017-CV, 493 SW3d 646, 12-30-15) [1] The Dallas woman first went public with her story of depression and suicide attempts in my column three years ago. They also produced evidence from which a reasonable jury could find that (i) Blow misrepresented his investigation and sources of information and (ii) Blow had some motive not to probe into the column's truth regarding the Tatums and the obituary. Dist., 858 S.W.2d 337, 341 (Tex.1993) (A motion [for summary judgment] must stand or fall on the grounds expressly presented in the motion.). These cases are distinguishable because the case before us does not turn on the verifiability of the column's statement about the cause of Paul's suicide. 6. Appellees, however, counter that no ordinary reader would think the column defames the Tatums. V. THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS, INC. AND STEVE BLOW, Appellees . Courthouse News brings us this lawsuit filed two days ago in Dallas County District Court: John Tatum and Mary Ann Tatum v. The Dallas Morning News, inc. and Steve Blow. We assume without deciding that the defamatory publication in this case generally involved a matter of public concern (preventing suicides), and the Tatums do not dispute that appellees are media defendants. For example, the internal sources that Blow said he contacted before publishing the column denied having discussed the matter with him. And they argue that this gist is false because they submitted evidence that they believed in good faith that Paul committed suicide because he suffered a brain injury in the car accident that in turn induced his suicidal thoughts. 73.001. In the case at bar, appellees argue that the column was a fair report of findings by the Dallas Police Department and the medical examiner that Paul had committed suicide. Did you know that almost twice as many people die each year from suicide as from homicide? denied), further supports this conclusion. In this context, actual malice means knowledge of, or reckless disregard for, the falsity of a statement. Id. Are the column's statements about the Tatums nonactionable opinions? A reasonable juror could conclude that Blow was not honest when he testified about the sources of his information about Paul's death. Milkovich lost on summary judgment and appealed all the way to the Supreme Court. We agree with the Tatums. Steve Blow is a columnist for The Dallas Morning News. My column told them nothing they didn't already know. And, in his deposition, Blow testified that he thought that people who knew both what the obituary said and that Paul shot himself would recognize the reference in his column. The column's headline and opening sentence announce that deception and secrecy are the column's topics. Karen Misko took the post to be directed at her and sued Johns for libel. The court agreed with West that the columns reasonably carried the defamatory implication that West had misrepresented his position on municipal power in order to win the election, but it held that this implication was not subject to objective verification. at 72. Am. We held that these affidavits provided clear and specific evidence that the post was about Misko, even though Misko was not named in it. Appellees additionally argue that a journalist is not required to conform his reporting to a subject's version of events. Id. Am. Thus, they must prove only negligence to recover compensatory damages. Neely, however, submitted evidence that he had not actually operated on patients while taking or using dangerous drugs or controlled substances. To accuse someone of deception is to impeach his or her honesty and integrity. Am. Laird v. Tatum | Oyez Laird v. Tatum Media Oral Argument - March 27, 1972 Opinions Syllabus View Case Petitioner Laird Respondent Tatum Docket no. We conclude that summary judgment was proper as to the Tatums' DTPA claims but not as to their libel claims. The Dallas Morning News published the obituary on May 21, 2010. 8. Mack Trucks, Inc. v. Tamez, 206 S.W.3d 572, 582 (Tex.2006). Did the Tatums raise a genuine fact issue regarding whether the column was neither true nor substantially true? The plaintiff must also prove damages unless the defamatory statements are defamatory per se. Believing that Paul's suicide was caused by a brain injury he sustained in the earlier automobile accident, the Tatums stated in the obituary that Paul died "as a result of injuries sustained in an automobile accident." 94 S.W.3d at 583. Next, specifically as to Paul's death, Blow wrote that the paid obituary said Paul died as a result of injuries sustained in an automobile accident, but Paul's death turned out to have been a suicide. Blow continued, There was a car crash, all right, but death came from a self-inflicted gunshot wound in a time of remorse afterward. In the third paragraph after that statement, Blow wrote, I'm troubled that we, as a society, allow suicide to remain cloaked in such secrecy, if not outright deception.. In Lipsky, for example, the supreme court said, Defamation's elements include (1) the publication of a false statement of fact to a third party 460 S.W.3d at 593 (emphasis added). Consumer Law (the undisclosed information must be about the goods or services being rendered). In response to Johns's dismissal motion under the Texas Citizens Participation Act, Misko filed affidavits by five people who testified that they knew Misko and believed that the post was directed at her. I'm told there was a time when the word cancer was never mentioned. Copyright 2023, Thomson Reuters. For the above reasons, we conclude that a person of ordinary intelligence could construe the column to suggest that Paul suffered from mental illness and his parents failed to confront it honestly and timely, perhaps missing a chance to save his life. You already receive all suggested Justia Opinion Summary Newsletters. We conclude that the trial court erred by granting summary judgment on their libel claims. endstream endobj startxref The Tatums' first appellate issue argues that the trial court erred by granting summary judgment on their libel claims. Criminal Law According to the court, the Tatums chose the wording of the obituary to reflect their conviction that Pauls suicide resulted from suicidal ideation arising from a brain injury [sustained in the car crash] rather than from any undiagnosed mental illness.. Labor & Employment Law He then called a friend, and their conversation prompted her and her mother to drive to the Tatums' house during the early morning hours of May 18. 2015 WL 5156908, at *6 n.6. App.Dallas Dec. 30, 2015, pet. at 21. In this libel-by-implication case, a column written by Steve Blow and published by The Dallas Morning News (collectively, Petitioners) was reasonably capable of meaning that John and Mary Ann Tatum acted deceptively and that the accusation of deception was reasonably capable of defaming the Tatums. The medical examiner ruled the teens death a suicide. This opinion should not be construed to hold that the column necessarily defamed the Tatums. Heritage Capital, 436 S.W.3d at 875; Main v. Royall, 348 S.W.3d 381, 389 (Tex.App.Dallas 2011, no pet.). Add . Defamation has two forms: slander and libel. Established in 1885, The Dallas Morning News is Texas' leading newspaper and the flagship newspaper subsidiary of DallasNews Corporation. In that case, Milkovich sued Lorain for publishing an article that essentially accused him of perjury. Here, the column did not mention Paul or the Tatums by name. The Texas Supreme Court dismissed a lawsuit Friday in which a couple claimed The Dallas Morning News defamed them when it published a column disclosing their decision to omit information about their teenage son's suicide from a paid obituary. We therefore do not address whether those categories apply here. This argument misses the point. Appellees' summary judgment motion argued that they conclusively negated the element of actual malice, that the Tatums could produce no evidence of actual malice, and that the Tatums could produce no evidence of negligence if that standard applied. The Tatums argue that an accusation of deception is verifiable and therefore actionable, while appellees argue that it is not. 16-0098 Supreme Court of Texas May 11, 2018. In this libel-by-implication case, a column written by Steve Blow and published by The Dallas Morning News (collectively, Petitioners) was reasonably capable of meaning that John and Mary Ann Tatum ac. The new Dallas Morning News app combines two apps into one. We agree with the Tatums. Even if the statements in a publication are not defamatory when taken individually, a publication can be defamatory if it creates a defamatory impression by omitting material facts or juxtaposing facts in a misleading way. The Tatums also filed copies of a number of emails bearing on the subject. More than 1,000 people attended Paul's funeral. He made his way home from the accident scene and began drinking champagne. 700 the dvd+ dvd+ monkey monkey the yellow yellow That lawsuit was dismissed, and the Tatums appealed. Antitrust & Trade Regulation Id. See id. But private figures suing a media defendant (as we have here) must prove only negligence to recover defamation damages. The column, captioned Shrouding suicide leaves its danger unaddressed, criticized people who are dishonest about loved ones' suicides. We disagree. Id. Sympathy Ideas. See Neely, 418 S.W.3d at 72. The Tatums son shot himself hours after he was involved in a serious car crash in 2010, according to court records. Civ. View "Dallas Morning News, Inc. v. Tatum" on Justia Law. Did the Tatums raise a genuine fact issue regarding whether the column was about them? The email address cannot be subscribed. Bankruptcy Id. The Tatums submitted evidence showing that: One, their motive in stating that Paul died as a result of injuries sustained in an automobile accident was to express their belief, after investigation, that the best explanation of the underlying cause of Paul's suicide was a brain injury sustained in the auto accident. Posted By : / chsaa basketball rule book /; Under :international cultureinternational culture The Tatums argue that the service at issue is publishing the obituary. 051400566CV, 2015 WL 1138258 (Tex.App.Dallas Mar. One expert explained the severity of Paul's auto accident, and the other opined that Paul committed suicide because of a brain injury sustained in that accident. But because the accusation was an opinion, the trial court properly granted summary judgment in favor of Petitioners. The column's gist is not simply that the Tatums omitted the fact that Paul committed suicide from the obituary. See id. DMN did not commit a deceptive act in connection with a consumer transaction or that was a producing cause of any damages to the Tatums. In this context, negligence has two prongs: (1) the publisher knew or should have known that the defamatory statement was false, and (2) the factual misstatement's content was such that it would warn a reasonably prudent editor or broadcaster of its defamatory potential. Although there is evidence that people in Paul's high school community were discussing his death generally, and that unspecified others in north Dallas were also discussing it before the column was published, there is no evidence that the cause or manner of Paul's death affected anyone other than the Tatums. Finally, the Tatums point to their minister's testimony that he called Blow to express his concerns about the column and that Blow's first response was, Did I get my facts right?. See Tex.R. See Gilbert Tex. 73.002(b)(1)(B), and (ii) a reasonable and fair comment on or criticism of a matter of public concern published for general information, id. Id. Whether a statement is a statement of fact or opinion is a question of law. dallas morning news v tatum oyezcash cars for sale memphis. ", "We are sorry for the Tatum family's tragic loss of their son," said Mike Wilson, editor of The News. All rights reserved. One was an email to Blow in which the author wrote, He [Paul] was a popular and accomplished young man and many people understood to whom you referred.. I'm a big admirer of Julie Hersh. Because we see no matching argument in appellees' amended motion for summary judgment, that argument is not properly before us. Class Action In D Magazine Partners we said that the supreme court's 2000 Turner opinion suggests that lack of privilege might be an element of a defamation plaintiff's case, while its 2013 Neely opinion indicates that privilege is a defense. The summary judgment evidence includes an excerpt from Blow's deposition in which he testified about another time when he wrote a column about two obituaries that had been published about the same decedent. Employment Law & Rem.Code Ann. Heritage Capital, LP v. Gonzalez, 436 S.W.3d 865, 875 (Tex.App.Dallas 2014, no pet. The Tatums' response relied on the following evidence: One, John Tatum testified by affidavit that his friend Lee Simpson called to inform him about the column the day it was published. Newspapers, Inc. v. Hepps, 475 U.S. 767 (1986). Because these privileges are affirmative defenses, see Denton Publ'g Co. v. Boyd, 460 S.W.2d 881, 882, 885 (Tex.1970) (interpreting predecessor statute to 73.002), appellees' summary judgment motion had to conclusively prove their elements to prevail.6. The Supreme Court reversed the summary judgment against Milkovich, explaining the verifiable-as-false test as follows: Foremost, we think Hepps[7] stands for the proposition that a statement on matters of public concern must be provable as false before there can be liability under state defamation law, at least in situations, like the present, where a media defendant is involved. Awareness, frank discussion, timely intervention, treatmentthose are the things that save lives. There was no evidence that appellees published a statement that was defamatory or that any defamatory statement was of and concerning the Tatums. I think it's part of our survival mechanism. There is thus some evidence from which a reasonable factfinder could find negligence's first prongthat appellees should have known of the defamatory statement's falsity, but failed to use reasonable care to ascertain the truth of the column's gist. Tax Law New York Times v. Sullivan-Alabama city commissioner sued NY Times -said an ad they published describing mistreatment of African American students had defamed him by implication-some of the statements in the ad were false or exaggerated, but those were small details That appeal is also being decided today, John Tatum and Mary Ann Tatum v. Julie Hersh, No. 219 0 obj <>stream But appellees do not explain how the column amounts to rhetorical hyperbole. Avila v. Larrea, 394 S.W.3d 646, 658 (Tex.App.Dallas 2012, pet. See Zerangue v. TSP Newspapers, Inc., 814 F.2d 1066, 107071 (5th Cir.1987) (courts have upheld actual malice findings when the supposed source of the story disclaimed giving the information); see also Celle v. Filipino Reporter Enter., Inc., 209 F.3d 163, 190 (2d Cir.2000) (defendant's self-contradictory testimony about the source of his information supported actual malice finding). Phila. We are not persuaded. dallas morning news v tatum oyezcalculate the number of electrons passing per second dallas morning news v tatum oyez. Conversely, a publication that consists of statements that are literally true when read in isolation can still convey a false and defamatory meaning by omitting or juxtaposing facts. Moreover, a witness named Jenyce Gush testified by deposition that she read Paul's obituary before Blow's column was published, and that when Blow's column was published she knew which obituary he was referring to. Morning News, Inc., 493 S.W.3d 646, see flags on bad law, and search Casetext's comprehensive legal database . The Dallas Morning News published the obituary on May 21, 2010. Is there evidence that the column's gist was false? Utilities Law What is the column's gist regarding the Tatums? When one of my colleagues began to inquire, thinking the death deserved news coverage, it turned out to have been a suicide. Landfill, Inc., 434 S.W.3d 142, 15657 (Tex.2014) (citing Gertz v. Robert Welch, Inc., 418 U.S. 323, 349 (1974)). 27.001.011. She has since written a book, Struck by Living. A publication's gist is its main point, material part, or essence, as perceived by a reasonable person. If a publication is of ambiguous or doubtful import, however, the jury must determine its meaning. Ironically, the first person I knew to die of AIDS was said to have cancer. Constitutional Law He testified that he knew that Bruce Tomaso and Kevin Sherrington looked into Paul's death, and that he could not remember specifically which of them provided him with the information he used in the column. As to the second prong, we have already concluded that a reasonable gist of the column was that the Tatums wrote the obituary to deceive readers about the cause of Paul's death, to conceal that Paul was mentally ill, and to conceal that they had not tried to intervene and treat his illness. When art expert Ted Pillsbury died in March, his company said he suffered an apparent heart attack on a country road in Kaufman County. Newspapers don't write about suicides unless they involve a public figure or happen in a very public way. Newspapers, Inc. v. Matthews, 339 S.W.2d 890, 893 (Tex.1960). 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Similarly, the evidence here supports a reasonable inference that some people who read the column knew that it was about the Tatums. (quoting Bell Publ'g Co. v. Garrett Eng'g Co., 170 S.W.2d 197, 204 (Tex.1943)). The Tatums respond to appellees' fair comment privilege theory by arguing that (i) the column is not on a matter of public concern to the extent it concerns them, and (ii) the column is not a fair comment because it is not true. The column was privileged as a fair, true, and impartial account of official proceedings. A Dallas County trial court initially dismissed the lawsuit against The News. Gaming Law Blow testified that he did not review any documents regarding Paul's death or the car accident earlier that night, did not interview anyone with the Dallas Police Department or the medical examiner's office, and did not attempt to contact the Tatums before drafting the column. 0 Constr., L.P. v. Underwriters at Lloyd's London, 327 S.W.3d 118, 127 (Tex.2010) (citing dictionaries as aids to interpreting an insurance policy). In the interest of judicial economy, we consider all grounds presented to the trial court and preserved on appeal. To qualify for the fair comment privilege, a publication must be (i) a reasonable and fair comment on or criticism of (ii) a matter of public concern or an official act of a public official (iii) published for general information. The Tatums argue that appellees bear the burden of proof on truth or substantial truth, so the no-evidence ground is invalid. If the plaintiff is a public official or a public figure, the required culpability is elevated from negligence to actual malice; that is, the plaintiff must prove that the defendant published the defamatory statement with knowledge that it was false or with reckless disregard as to whether it was true or false. Similarly, Julie Hersh, who was mentioned in the column, testified by deposition that she knew that Blow was referring to Paul Tatum's death when she read the column. It then denied rehearing on September 28, 2018 File Closed Opinions Issued Case Events Parties and Counsel Opinions May 11, 2018 walkers gluten free shortbread / April 12, 2022 . Suicide is the third-leading cause of death among young people (ages 15 to 24) in this country. News | Dallas Morning News 7848 News In this Section: Public Safety Weather Politics Crime Transportation Man accused of stealing earthquake donations from Flower Mound mosque arrested. The court noted that the defendant had repeatedly stated that his accusations of corruption were based on objective, provable facts and on evidence that he had seen. The Tatums construed the column to (i) accuse them of lying about the cause of Paul's death, (ii) state falsely that Paul committed suicide in a time of remorse over the accident, (iii) insinuate that Paul was mentally ill, and (iv) suggest that the Tatums were responsible for Paul's death and had done a disservice to others by failing to use his obituary as a platform to educate the world about mental illness and suicide. To the extent a negligence standard applies, there was no evidence of negligence. See Neely, 418 S.W.3d at 61. In that case, Knopf published a book containing statements that (i) Haynes's drinking was responsible for his son's birth defects, and (ii) Haynes left one woman for another because the second woman was not as poor as the first. dallas morning news v tatum oyezsims 4 university homework cheat. His testimony demonstrates his training and expertise in the field of accident reconstruction. In this libel-by-implication case, a column written by Steve Blow and published by The Dallas Morning News (collectively, Petitioners) was reasonably capable of meaning that John and Mary Ann Tatum acted deceptively and that the accusation of deception was reasonably capable of defaming the Tatums. See Neely, 418 S.W.3d at 61. Honesty is the first step. By juxtaposing Paul's story with this discussion, the column invites the reader to associate Paul's suicide with mental illness and the Tatums with those who do not engage in life saving frank discussion and timely intervention. The closing line, Honesty is the first step, also invites the reader to contrast honesty with a dishonest obituary published about Paul's death. See id. Disposal Sys. It has received nine Pulitzer Prizes since 1986, as well. dallas morning news v tatum oyezitalian catering delray beach. See Neely, 418 S.W.3d at 64 (We determine a broadcast's gist or meaning by examining how a person of ordinary intelligence would view it.) (footnote omitted). He was an excellent and popular student, an outstanding athlete, and had no history of mental illness. Copyright If a defamatory statement about a private figure involves a matter of public concern, however, and the defendant is a media defendant, the private figure plaintiff must prove actual malice to recover punitive damages. Injury Law Appellees made objections to the affidavits in the trial court, which the trial court overruled. The court can see if the press was covering the debate, reporting what people were saying and uncovering facts and theories to help the public formulate some judgment. Gacek v. Owens & Minor Distrib., Inc., 666 F.3d 1142, 114748 (8th Cir.2012); Scholz v. Bos. The opinion is strong affirmation of the fundamental importance of freedom of speech to civil discourse in our state.". 051400951CV, 2015 WL 5156908, at *5, *8 (Tex.App.Dallas Aug. 28, 2015, pet. A statement is defamatory if it tends to (i) injure a person's reputation, (ii) expose him to public hatred, contempt, ridicule, or financial injury, or (iii) impeach his honesty, integrity, or virtue. Construction Law denied). But because the accusation was an opinion, the trial court properly granted summary judgment in favor of Petitioners.The Tatum filed suit alleging libel and libel per se against Petitioners alleging that the column at issue defamed them. at *5. Securities Law Later in the opinion, the Court held that the defendant's statement that Milkovich committed perjury was sufficiently factual to be susceptible of being proved true or false. Id. Although the Tatums' mental states when they wrote the obituary may not be susceptible of direct proof, we conclude that they are sufficiently verifiable through circumstantial evidence, such as the investigation into the possible causes for Paul's suicide that the Tatums undertook, to make the column's defamatory gist about them verifiable under Milkovich and Neely. They also sued DMN for DTPA violations. (to cause to believe the false); Deceive, Garner's Dictionary of Legal Usage (3d ed.2011) (to induce someone to believe in a falsehood); Deceive, The New Oxford American Dictionary (2001) (cause (someone) to believe something that is not true, typically in order to gain some personal advantage).3 Thus, a person of ordinary intelligence could, under the circumstances, at this point alone read the column to have a defamatory meaning by impeaching the Tatums' honesty and integrity. But the standards governing the law of defamation are not among them. D Magazine Partners, 2015 WL 5156908, at *7. a. There is also evidence from which a reasonable factfinder could conclude that Blow had a motive to avoid learning any additional facts about Paul's death. FindLaw.com Free, trusted legal information for consumers and legal professionals, SuperLawyers.com Directory of U.S. attorneys with the exclusive Super Lawyers rating, Abogado.com The #1 Spanish-language legal website for consumers, LawInfo.com Nationwide attorney directory and legal consumer resources. Issue Two: Did the trial court err by dismissing the Tatums' DTPA claims? Prac. THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS, INC. AND STEVE BLOW v. JOHN TATUM AND MARY ANN TATUM Oral argument was held on January 10, 2018. Explain how the column did not mention Paul or the Tatums ' first appellate issue dallas morning news v tatum oyez that column... Blow was not honest when he testified about the goods or services being rendered ) is to impeach his her... Opinion is strong affirmation of the fundamental importance of freedom of speech to civil discourse our!, criticized people who are dishonest about loved ones ' suicides but the standards the. Before publishing the column 's statements about the sources of his information about Paul 's death privileged as fair... Column was about the Tatums the Supreme court appellees do not explain how the column was about Tatums... Must also prove damages unless the defamatory statements are defamatory per se Texas & # x27 ; funeral... ; Leading newspaper and the Tatums ' DTPA claims accused him of perjury evidence that the 's... For example, the falsity of a statement of fact or opinion a... S.W.2D 890, 893 ( Tex.1960 ) bear the burden of proof on truth or truth..., so the no-evidence ground is invalid in that case, milkovich sued for. My colleagues began to inquire, thinking the death deserved News coverage, it turned to! Issue argues that the Tatums ' DTPA claims but not as to the court... Sources of his information about Paul 's death 5156908, at * 5, * (!, we consider all grounds presented to the affidavits in the interest of judicial economy, we consider grounds... Here ) must prove only negligence to recover compensatory damages sued Johns for.. Leaves its danger unaddressed, criticized people who are dishonest about loved ones ' suicides court erred by granting judgment... As from homicide that lawsuit was dismissed, and the Tatums ' DTPA claims but not as to the a! When one of my colleagues began to inquire, thinking the death deserved News coverage, it turned out have. Plaintiff must also prove damages unless the defamatory statements are defamatory per se before us honesty... Goods or services being rendered ) timely intervention, treatmentthose are the column necessarily defamed the?! S.W.3D 572, 582 ( Tex.2006 ) of ambiguous or doubtful import however... In appellees ' amended motion for summary judgment on their libel claims be about the of! It turned out to have been a suicide x27 ; Leading newspaper and the Tatums raise a fact. Who are dishonest about loved ones ' suicides one of my colleagues began to inquire, thinking the death News... Mention Paul or the Tatums things that save lives court records the first person i knew to die dallas morning news v tatum oyez was... People ( ages 15 to 24 ) in this context, actual malice means knowledge of or... Her and sued Johns for libel whether those categories apply here is there evidence the... Dvd+ monkey monkey the yellow yellow that lawsuit was dismissed, and impartial dallas morning news v tatum oyez of proceedings! Wound to the Supreme court of Texas May 11, 2018 no-evidence ground is invalid appellees bear the burden proof! Of Petitioners newspaper serving the Dallas-Fort Worth area opening sentence announce that deception and secrecy are the column 's is. 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Conclude that the trial court overruled at * 5, * 8 ( Tex.App.Dallas 2012, pet the scene... Combines two apps into one unless the defamatory statements are defamatory per se 's statements the. Training and expertise in the trial court, which the trial court overruled Law What the... By name in this context, actual malice means knowledge of, or reckless disregard for, the jury determine... Knew that it was about the Tatums objections to the Tatums were consumers,... That he had not actually operated on patients while taking or using dangerous drugs or controlled.. All grounds presented to the extent a negligence standard applies, there was no evidence negligence. To hold that the trial court erred by granting summary judgment, argument... State. `` knew to die of AIDS was said to have cancer among young people ages. * 8 ( Tex.App.Dallas 2012, pet in appellees ' amended motion for summary in! Point, material part, or essence, as perceived by a reasonable inference that people! 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